Watch Kings of Leon Perform New Song ‘Around the World’
Kings of Leon debuted "Around the World," the second pre-release track from their upcoming Walls album, during an appearance on Later with Jools Holland on Sept. 13.
The performance, which you can watch above, came just a few days after the band debuted the record's first single, "Waste a Moment." The new album, due Oct. 14 and available for pre-order now, marks their first release since 2013’s Mechanical Bull — and comes at the end of a trying period that included a variety of challenges for the band members, both in terms of the group dynamic as well as things they were facing on their own.
As bassist Jared Followill recently told NME, Walls is in part something of a tribute to a dear friend of the band who passed away while they were working on the record. "He was a very challenging guy," he explained. "He would come on the road with us and be involved in setlists and he wanted us to try new things and keep us on our toes. His passing was a big part of why we challenged ourselves."
"What we’ve done with this album is everything he’s been trying to get us to do for 10 years, from the way that we approached everything," added frontman Caleb Followill. "He was there for everything but when that happened we all really connected with what he actually wanted."
Without outright disavowing Mechanical Bull, Caleb contrasted that album with Walls by highlighting the group's re-dedication to creative exploration and a willingness to shake things up with their sound.
"We got into a comfort zone that we’ve tried to peel away on this album by not doing it here in the studio, not using the same producer, really challenging ourselves," he continued. "We wanted to do things where we were scratching our heads going, ‘Holy s---, is this right, is this wrong?’"
Rock's Best Label Vs. Artist Disputes
More From Diffuser.fm
![10 Years Ago: Kings of Leon Move Past Southern Rock With ‘Because of the Times’](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2017/04/Kings-of-Leon-HandMeDown.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Kings of Leon Add 2017 North American Tour Dates](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2017/01/KOL-WALLS-Band2.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Kings of Leon, Wilco, Dave Matthews to Play 2017 JazzFest](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2017/01/Dave-Matthews-Kings-of-Leon-Wilco-Steve-Jennings-Dimitrios-Kambouris-Jason-Merritt.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Kings of Leon Kick Off ‘Walls’ Tour: Setlist, Video](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2017/01/Kings-of-Leon.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Kings of Leon Announce 2017 Tour Dates](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2016/10/Kings-of-Leon1.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Kings of Leon Albums Ranked in Order of Awesomeness](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2016/10/KingsofLeonWB.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Kings of Leon Share ‘Reverend’ From ‘Walls’](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2016/10/Kings-of-Leon.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Listen to Kings of Leon’s New Song, ‘Around the World’](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2016/09/Kings-of-Leon1.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Hear Kings of Leon’s New Single, ‘Waste a Moment’](http://townsquare.media/site/443/files/2016/09/KoLWaM.jpg?w=980&q=75)